Sweets Romance
by LScore
Summary: Their love story, told in sweet tidbits. (WCI and Zou arc spoilers, set after WCI but written before it happens).
1. Chapter 1: Pudding

Sweets Romance - First Quarto - Pudding

All the standard disclaimers apply. One Piece is owned by (g)Oda-sensei, and I am a mere fan girl gleaning crumbs of his genius. I make no profit off this work. Note that this is set post Whole Cake Island but is written Pre Whole Cake Island (if that makes any sense), so if there's any incongruities (like new crew members missing, powers missing, Sanji actually not coming back (please no)), that's why. Enjoy!

* * *

 _Pudding: a flan-like cold custard dessert. In Japan, it's considered a comfort dessert._

* * *

Robin noticed first. She always did.

She did spend the most time with Nami, so had a front row seat for all the little things. Like how Nami had started tensing up when she felt Sanji approaching. Or how "Nami-swannn" always made her look up, if only for a second. Or how often Nami got sunburn these days. But only on her cheeks. Even when she was inside.

Robin also noticed the things that didn't happen. Nami didn't meet Sanji's eyes any more. She didn't charge him an exorbitant amount of interest any more, nor did she try to hit on him now that she knew he came from a rich family. At every port they stopped at, she didn't try to manipulate him to stay behind if they had treasure on board. She even always managed to get someone else to give him the money for supplies.

She'd made Robin do it a few times, but after Sanji's pathetic look the third time, Robin had made it her business to avoid being around when they docked. Those two were old enough to work out their own issues.

 _Ufufu._ She couldn't wait.

* * *

Brook noticed when he and Sanji made their weekly attempt to peek on Nami-san. It wasn't like they regularly scheduled peeping sessions, but about once a week, there was the rare time when Luffy was full, everyone was quiet, and the seas were calm enough to let Nami take a bath.

Brook just found himself strolling down the hallway towards the bathroom. Sanji was already there, cigarette in mouth, leaning oh-so-casually against the wall. Brook raised an eyebrow (or he would, if he'd had an eyebrow). What was Sanji-kun doing, just standing there? Was he guarding the door? Was he just listening to Nami-san shower or just breathing in the citrus and honey scented mist? Now why would he do that?

Sanji spotted Brook and put a lascivious smile on. Putting a finger to his lips, he motion for Brook to take a spot on the other side of the door. Brook saw him raise three fingers, and got ready...

 _3... 2... 1.._.

Success! Brook was through the door, and there was Nami-san... There was Nami-san...

Nami-san was fully dressed?

"SANJI-KUN I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" Nami yelled. She was armed with her sorcery climatact, extended the length of the room. Her cheeks were bright pink, and there was a slight tremble in her lip.

Brook only had a couple of seconds to wonder why only Sanji was lying in a crumpled heap beside the door, already knocked out. Could Nami-san have realized that Sanji was behind the door and had been waiting for him?

Then Nami realized the skeletal musician was also in the room, shrieked, and brained him with another sweep of her sorcery climatact (or at least she would have, if he'd had a brain).

* * *

Franky noticed when Sanji approached Robin with a cup of coffee and a dessert. She'd been in her usual spot near the helm, with her book in both hands, and an empty cup beside her third hand for a full twenty minutes. That was super strange on its own - Sanji was nearly psychic about anything that had to do with the girls and food and drink - but the cook was, for once, late, and he didn't even do the noodle thing that was so damn distracting.

Franky surreptitiously pushed his nose down and styled his hair into a satellite dish. Not subtle, he knew, but he didn't think his crew would realize that it actually worked as a listening device. He hoped the cook wasn't sick. Then they'd have to eat Luffy's cooking, and that would be super bad.

"Robin-chan, here you are. Sorry for the delay," A flustered Sanji set the food and drink down, spilling a drop, "Oh, damn it."

"It's okay, Sanji-kun," Robin smiled, wiping the coffee up with her finger and licking the drop off. Normally that would have sent the pervert into all kinds of spasms, but today, Sanji didn't react.

Robin spooned some of the sugar into the cup, then looked for the milk. "Sanji-kun, are we out of milk?"

Sanji flushed, "Ah! Sorry Robin-chan! I'll get it right away!"

"It's okay," Robin took her first sip, then made a small grimace of surprise, "Is this... salt?"

"Eh?" Sanji dipped his pinky into the sugar dish and tasted it, then groaned loudly and put his face in his hands , "I'm so sorry, Robin-chan."

Robin smiled, and surreptitiously used her Flower-Flower fruit powers to draw up a chair for Sanji, "Why don't you sit down and tell me what's bothering you, Sanji-kun?"

Sanji obliged with a less than graceful slump. Oi, Oi, now even Franky was getting worried. The cook may not be particularly good with women, but he was excellent with food and on his feet. What in the world was going on?

"It's Nami-san," He admitted, "She won't talk to me or even look at me. She still eats my food, but she doesn't even manipulate me into doing things any more. Robin-chan, have I done something wrong to make her upset? I would cut off my right hand before I would make Nami-san upset."

Robin picked up the dessert, but didn't eat it (Franky wouldn't have either, given the state of Sanji's mind right now). She looked like she was debating what she could say, "We nearly lost you, Sanji-kun. Nami was the most worried about you, when you went to your wedding without telling her anything. Luffy was originally going to go alone, you know."

"Yeah?" Sanji perked up a little, "Then why is she mad at me now?"

Robin hesitated, then tapped her spoon on the edge of her dessert plate. "She'll tell you if you serve her a few of these."

Sanji's eyes lit up as he looked at the innocent little dessert, "Yes! Thank you God, Buddha, Robin-chan! I have the key to all my answers! I'll get cooking right away!" he gave Robin an enthusiastic hug and ran back to the kitchen.

Robin chuckled to herself, and took a heaping golden spoonful of the treat for herself. She looked like she regretted it after the first bite.

"Neh, Franky?" Franky jumped when a pair of lips grew out of the wheel in front of him. Robin's devil fruit powers were really strange. "I know you were listening. Want some pudding? Sanji-kun topped it with cola and soy sauce instead of caramel."

* * *

Usopp noticed when Sanji plopped a plate of pudding in front of him and Luffy.

"Wooah!" Luffy yelled excitedly. It was a gorgeous dessert, twice the size of a normal pudding, and decorated with delicate orange sugar roses and ribbons of orange candy and tiny baby oranges. Honey and caramel syrup had been drizzled on in intricate patterns, creating a lace doily effect.

"Is it okay, Sanji?" Usopp asked. It looked like something Sanji would make for one of the girls, and it seem to be a shame to waste it on Luffy, who would stuff it down super quickly.

"Yeah, yeah, it's only trash," Sanji had turned his back on them and waved his hand over his shoulder, "We might as well give it to the human rubber recycling machine right there."

Trash? Usopp eyed the pudding. Oranges meant that it was probably for Nami, but that couldn't be right. Nami loved all the little treats Sanji made for her, and something as over the top as this would definitely not be trash. Usopp got suspicious. Was it poisoned? Had she done something to it? Were she and Sanji trying to play a joke on him and Luffy?

Being the brave captain Usopp that he was, he decided that he would magnanimously let Luffy try it first.

Luffy, of course, didn't even think about it. He took the spoon and dug a huge bite out the pudding, then crammed it into his mouth. Usopp watched carefully for any signs of grossness or super spiciness. Luffy just grinned through a mouthful of sugar roses and began to vacuum more into his mouth. "SO GOOD!"

"Hey, save some for me, you pig!" Usopp yelled, and hurried to get in on the action.

* * *

Chopper, Zoro and Luffy noticed when they were hungry one day and Robin was leaning on the door of the galley, keeping them from getting their dinner.

"Robin," Luffy whined, "Why can't we go in? I'm HUNGRY and I can smell meat!"

"You'll just have to bear it, Luffy-kun," Robin passed around a plate of Onigiri, "Nami-san and Sanji-kun are having an important conversation right now."

"Important conversation?" Chopper asked, taking an onigiri.

"Mhmm. Come on, we can eat on the deck, can't we Franky?" Robin tipped her head at the cyborg.

He nodded, but eyed the onigiri doubtfully. Robin chuckled when she remembered the salted coffee and the cola and soy sauce pudding from a couple days ago, "Don't worry, I made these," she reassured him.

Relieved, Franky took one and started heading for the deck. The others grumbled, preferring the modest feast Sanji usually prepared for dinner, but most followed the Cyborg obediently enough.

Zoro, however, hung behind to take a quick peek through the porthole window into the Galley. That idiot love cook had been worrying him, even though he'd never admit it out loud. Sanji hadn't even responded to the casual insults Zoro had thrown his way, and would only sigh when Zoro asked him whether he had cooked his brain.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" What Zoro saw in the porthole, however, made him fall over laughing. He was rolling on the ground, clutching his stomach laughing. The others turned back to stare. Zoro? Laughing like that?

"I wanna see!" Luffy's head stretched back towards the porthole, but Robin was faster.

"Ocho fleur: Cover!"

"Robiiiiiiiiiiiiiin," Luffy and Chopper pouted as Robin's hands covered up the porthole.

"They need to talk and they need their privacy," She said, gently but firmly, "Now come along, or I'll give Franky all the onigiri. They're all filled with your favourite kinds of meat, Luffy."

"Ah! No fair!"

* * *

Sanji noticed when someone threw the pudding at him.

He'd sensed it coming, of course, and was ready to catch it and then yell at whoever had dared to waste his food and interrupt his precious time with Robin-chan. She'd volunteered to use her Flower-Flower fruit power to help him make the onigiri for tomorrow's lunch while he made dinner. He, of course, had eagerly accepted. Time to spend with his precious Robin-chan! And he'd been running a little behind anyways, since preparing all those elaborate puddings for Nami-san had taken a lot of time and care.

He'd just been thinking of Nami-san. Ah, Nami-san, beautiful, lovely goddess - Sanji wished he knew what he'd done to upset her. He'd tried the puddings, but she'd just refused to eat them. Refused to eat them! Nami-san had refused to eat his food! His mind boggled at the thought. But he'd trusted Robin-chan and made one last, heroic effort. It was a beautiful creation, a golden orange pudding shaped like a fairy tale castle. He'd even adorned it with little sugar Straw Hat flags, a sugar ribbon rainbow overhead, and a sugar figurine of Nami the princess in the castle. He was proud of that work, and he'd put all of his heart into it for Nami-san!

So Sanji was not happy that someone had slammed the door open, taken several angry steps in, taken this amazing confection and was throwing it at him. How'd they managed to get it away from Nami...

Then he realized it was Nami throwing it at him. The shock caused him to falter long enough for the flying pudding to hit him straight in the face.

 _Deathly silence._

 _Plop._

The sound of most of the pudding sliding off Sanji's face and onto the floor caused Robin to recover her wits. She grabbed the pile of onigiri, and slipped out the door that Nami had stomped in from, and deftly held it shut behind her. Sanji noticed her as she passed through the door. Thank goodness for Robin-chan.

For the first time his life, Sanji wasn't thinking about the food had been wasted.

He was shocked. He'd never seen this kind of temper from Nami before. Nami was heaving, and tears sparkled in her angry brown eyes.

"Nami-san...," Sanji didn't know what to say. Why was Nami crying?

"You're so cruel," Nami whispered. She was standing there, arms around her body in a protective hold and refusing to meet his eyes. The accusation and the stance cut to his heart. Why was she so ready to run away from him?

"Why?" He asked, genuinely bewildered, "What did I do?"

That got Nami's attention, and her ire. Her head snapped up, and her eyes met his in a furious glare. She was so beautiful when she was angry, but all Sanji wanted to do was to wipe away the unshed tears that were making her eyes bright.

"Use your brain, you idiot asshole!" She yelled, "A PUDDING?! A pudding shaped like a CASTLE? It's like you decided to serve me all my worst nightmares on a plate!"

"Worst nightmares?" Sanji asked again, still perplexed. A pudding... a castle... what was it about them that scared Nami so?

In Bege's stomach... could it be?

 _The Groom will be the third son of the Vinsmoke family, Sanji, and his bride... will be the 36th daughter of the Charlotte Family, Pudding!_

"What was your worst nightmare, Nami-san?"

"You know," Nami muttered, turning away from him and heading for the door.

Sanji was officially fed up. Fed up with her running away from him, fed up with hurting her and not knowing why, and, most of all, fed up with Nami avoiding him all the time. Each avoidance, each slight, each glance away was a slash in the death of a thousand cuts his heart was suffering.

"No, Nami-san, I don't know!" Sanji growled, advancing on her. He could see her struggling to get the door open. Robin must be holding it from the other side. He should really make Robin-chan a really big coffee cake afterwards.

Nami's back stiffened, no doubt from the tone. Sanji, the impeccable gentleman, had never spoken to her like that before. Sanji was past caring. He'd pissed her off for a reason he didn't understand. At least if she got mad at him for being rude, he'd know why to grovel.

"I don't know what I've done, Nami-san, that's upset you so much. I don't know why a pudding shaped like a castle, Nami-san, is your worst nightmare," he growl, each carefully measured step bringing him closer to the stiff line of her back. He wanted to stroke that line, to pet her and make her relaxed and happy again, but he couldn't. So he placed both hands on either side of her head, against the door, to cage her in between his arms.

God, he wanted to touch her.

"I don't know why you won't even look at me anymore, Nami-san," He whispered, his broken heart in his voice. His low tone sent shivers down that rigid, beautiful back. "Please tell me how I can make us right again. Please, just get mad at me and tell me what's wrong. Please just look at me again, Nami-san. Please."

Slowly, she turned.

* * *

Nami noticed when she burst out laughing. She couldn't help it, she really couldn't.

There she was, trying desperately to hide the tears running down her face from him, and there he was, begging her to turn around, and when she did...

She couldn't stop laughing. He just looked so ridiculous!

Nami had pretty good aim, and the pudding had hit him straight in the face. While most of it had fallen off, there were still oddly shaped bits stuck all over Sanji's face and hair (it really had been a big pudding). His cigarette had been put out by the dessert, so it hung limply out of his mouth. Some of the sugar flags stuck out at weird angles in his bangs, and there was a sugar ribbon rainbow, perched, implausibly and incongruously jauntily, on his hair. Those pudding accessories and the adorably embarrassed and confused expression on his face made the serious moment dissolve, and Nami dissolve into giggles along with it.

Sanji turned bright crimson to the roots of his blond hair. He sank to his heels, hid his face between his knees and raked a distracted hand through his bangs, only to pull out a couple of half-melted straw hats flags with his hand. He groaned even louder.

"I'm so... ahahaha... so sorry... hehe..., Sanji-kun," Nami choked out between giggles, sitting back against the galley door for support.

Sanji peeked through those sugar covered bangs at her, and gave her a sheepish smile, "I'm glad you're smiling again, Nami-san."

This got her to sober down like nothing else could. Nami looked away again, but Sanji's voice snapped out, steelier if still gentle "Please look at me, Nami-san. I'd gladly smash a hundred puddings into my face if it'd make you laugh, but I think we might be here for a while if I did."

This got another wry smile from the navigator, and she looked at him hesitantly. God, this was so embarrassing, and she must look like such a wreck.

"There, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Sanji, however, smiled with relief, and slowly, hesitatingly, ran a knuckle down her cheek.

His touch made her shiver. She blushed and looked downwards again, "It is."

"Why, Nami-san? Please tell me why?"

She wanted to refuse. She wanted to bury her head in her knees and not come up again until he left her alone or Robin opened the door and let her escape. She wanted to do anything but respond. But the utter depth of sadness and loneliness in his voice pushed her to respond. She never meant to hurt him.

"Because I'm scared, Sanji," She whispered, "I'm scared you'll leave us again, or push us away like you did out of Bege's Castle-Castle fruit fortress, or go off and marry some beautiful pirate princess called Pudding. I'm scared you'll leave me alone again."

"Oh, Nami," Nami felt herself being pulled in against his strong chest. She could hear his heart beating, fast, like hers, "I'm a big idiot. But I came back, didn't I? I promised I would."

"Yeah, but it scares me that I was so scared of you leaving me. I was more scared than when Robin left us in Water 7." Sanji said nothing, but Nami felt herself instinctively seek comfort by burrowing deeper into his embrace.

"You're... special, Sanji. I... I think I love you, and it ... scares me," Her last words were a whispered confession against his chest. She prayed he hadn't heard, but by the way he suddenly grabbed her shoulders and pushed her back so he could look at her face told her he had.

She almost flinched, the look in his eyes was so intense. "Say it again, Nami-san."

"Wh-What?" She stammered, unable to pull her eyes away from his searing blue gaze. His grip on her shoulders wasn't bruising, but it was immovable.

"Say it again." He repeated, searching for something, she didn't know what, in her eyes.

"N-No," She stammered. God, how had she even said it in the first place?

"Nami, please do not take back the words I think I've been waiting my whole, utterly besotted life to hear you say. I've been in love with you since the moment I saw you in the Baratie," His hands shook on her shoulders, but the grip still didn't bruise. She almost wanted to smile at that. Typical, chivalrous Sanji, even in the grip of his emotions.

"Really?" She asked, in a small voice, "You mean it? Even with all the other girls? Even with... Violet?"

Sanji looked like he wanted to bang his head against the galley door. "Nami, I was raised to be kind to women, to appreciate their gentleness and beauty and strength. But Nami, you're not just a woman to me, you're my goddess. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you, including ignoring all other women for the rest of my life, if you'd just love me."

A watery giggle escaped her lips. The thought of Sanji ignoring all other women was just too absurd, and besides, she kind of liked that side of him. If she was being honest, she loved it, like every other facet of his personality that made him the warm, strong, funny, sweet, gentleman he was.

"You don't have to do that, Sanji-kun." Hesitantly, she went up on her knees so they were at the same height, and leaned in to nibble a bit of the pudding off his cheek. His skin was warm under her lips, "I love you anyways."

Sanji stared at her for a long, blank moment, like she'd given him the moon and he didn't know what to do with it, or like she'd hit him on the head with a real thousand ton hammer. It was long enough to make her blush even redder. Jeez, was she going to have to do everything?

She leaned in again, plucking the lip cigarette from his mouth. This time, she was going for his lips, not his cheek. It was just the merest brush of lips, the lightest touch held for longest of eternities, until Sanji realized that yes, all of his dreams were really coming true, and it was really Nami kissing him in the galley, while they were both sitting on the floor in front of the galley door, and he was getting pudding into her hair.

He decided to worry about the pudding later.

* * *

Much, much later, Robin came back to the galley to return the plate that had held the onigiri the other Straw Hats had had for dinner. She'd knocked first, because she could hear the giggling through the door, but when she entered, Nami-san was sitting at the counter, and Sanji was busy at the stove, whipping up a late dinner. The galley was sparkling clean, and there wasn't a bit of pudding left anywhere, except...

"Dinner will be ready in a bit, Robin-chan. You can tell the other bastards five minutes," Sanji called from the stove. Robin pretended she couldn't see him surreptitiously wiping his cheek with a towel.

"Alright. Everything okay?" She raised her eye at the younger woman, who blushed, but nodded. _Oh good._

"Nami-san?" Robin lifted an eyebrow, then motioned to a dollop of pudding on the young woman's cleavage, "You might want to clean that up first."

* * *

IT'S SO FLUFFY I COULD DIE. I had to stop and blush several times, and honestly I stopped worrying about being in character after about half way through. How do you write two characters falling in love from a manga where the creator has absolutely denied any romance during the series? Iunno, man. I hope I did it justice though!

This was written to help me cope with the feels (and vague terrors) I have of WCI (like Oda-sensei entirely sinking the Sanami ship). Sanji had better come back without a bride, guys, or I swear to god I'm going to explode in sad, mopey, fanfiction and inflict a great deal of fictional pain onto Pudding. I also wanted to write it from a "See? An intercrew romance could work without tearing down any other crew members" could work,

And yes, this is the first of four sweets related stories, so look forward to more later (once my cheeks cool down ^^")! Also, fair warning, this may go M (in the oblique references to bed-bouncing way, not the violent way) in the future (depends on how the next chapter turns out).


	2. Chapter 2: Mellorine

**Sweets Romance - Second Quarto - Mellorine**

All the standard disclaimers apply. One Piece is owned by (g)Oda-sensei, and I am a mere fan girl gleaning crumbs of his genius. I make no profit off his work.

* * *

 _Mellorine: a lower cost alternative to ice cream, wherein other fats are used instead of butterfat._

* * *

"Robin!" Nami burst into the girls room where the archaeologist was toweling her wet hair. Tears were streaming down her face.

"Nami-san?" Robin rose to her feet in alarm, "Is everything alright?" She gathered the other woman into her arms, rocking her a little while Nami sobbed into her purple robe.

"I'm such an idiot," Nami bawled.

"Did something happen with Sanji-kun? He didn't hurt your feelings, did he? Did he flirt with another woman?" Robin realized how stupid that sounded after the words left her mouth - they were at sea, after all, and he'd been nothing but polite to her. But she couldn't think of what else would have set the navigator off like this. The two of them had slipped into a relationship so naturally that it'd taken Luffy a couple weeks to realize that the two of them were actually romantically involved. Sanji was still an idiot over Nami, but still pampered Robin and every other woman who crossed his path. He was maybe a little more protective of Nami-san, but only a little. Nami, for her part, was back to teasing Sanji. She was maybe a little more tender, but only a little. Now that she thought about it, Luffy was still probably a little confused.

"No," Nami sobbed. For some reason, the admission only made her cry harder, "He's been so," she hiccuped, "considerate of my feelings, I had to tell him he could go help that woman who fell over in the street yesterday."

Robin smiled a little. No matter what the other woman's many flaws were, irrational jealousy wasn't one of them. Nami understood that the cook's chivalry wasn't just from pervertedness, and accepted and liked it about him. Robin still got her coffee refilled as soon as she finished a cup, little treats that she appreciated, and compliments that were still extravagant but not so lovey-dovey. It didn't bother Nami - they'd talked about it soon after the famous pudding incident.

Robin had seen the weather witch create a rain cloud to follow a woman who was getting a little too familiar with their favourite blond at their last stop, though. It'd ruin the woman's perfectly coiffed hair.

"Did he say something stupid?" Robin asked, continuing to probe. She was worried about this storm of tears - it was already starting to soak through the super absorbent fabric of her robe.

Nami could only shake her head, she was crying so hard. No, that wouldn't've made sense to Robin either. Sanji had been watching Nami for so long, that between the two of them, Nami was more likely to say something thoughtless.

Like when the cat burgler had finally made the crack that they should send Germa 66 a bill. Sanji had forced a smile, and then locked himself in the kitchen for an afternoon until Nami had managed to pick the newly installed lock. Robin didn't know exactly what the two of them had said, but when Sanji had emerged to call them in for dinner, he'd been holding a furiously blushing Nami's hand in public for the first time.

Zoro and Luffy had hooted. Nami had smacked them with her Climatact. The rest of them had learned their lesson.

"Nami," Gently, but firmly, Robin set the other woman on her own bed and handed her a box of tissues, "Tell me what's wrong."

The younger woman sniffed, then blew her nose in a most unladylike snort, and grabbed another few tissues to wipe her eyes with.

Robin waited patiently. What exactly was going on?

"He...," Nami hesitated, dabbing her nose.

Robin raised her eyebrow. And waited. How much had Sanji screwed up?

"He...," Nami hesitated again, and burst out in tears, "He didn't have any Ice Cream left!"

Even Robin's legendary poker face failed her, "What?!"

* * *

 _20 minutes ago..._

"Sanji-kun," Nami called from where she was sitting at the counter.

"Yes, Nami-love?" Sanji stopped chopping mid-carrot, and grinned like an idiot. He loved being able to call her that, and the way she blushed when he did.

She did the blush and embarrassment now, but there was a little smile on her lips. Sanji felt like a million berries. His life couldn't get much better.

Sanji had learned a lot over the last couple of months. He learned what it was like to actually succeed in coaxing kisses out of blushing maidens, and that surprise back hugs were always welcome, although so were front hugs (but only when no one else was looking). He learned what it was to bask in the peeks his girlfriend snuck, and he learned the pleasure of being able to gaze at her all day and not feel embarrassed when she caught him at it. He also learned what it was like to be worried over, and soothed, and tended to when he came back hurt, and what it was like to do the soothing and the tending (he'd already been doing the worrying).

He'd also learn how to cook around the maps Nami spread all over his table when she was working there, like she did most evenings after dinner and like she was now. She told the rest of the crew it was because she had a better view of what was going on on the deck from the porthole than from the library. Half of them pretended to believe her. The other half didn't care.

"Sanji-kun," Nami called again, with a bit of irritation in her voice that brought him back to earth, "Earth to Sanji."

"Ah, sorry, Nami-love," Sanji apologized, "What can I do for you?"

"I want ice-cream," She demanded.

Sanji blinked. Nami rarely straight out asked him for anything. Nudges, sure. Hints broad enough that even that idiot swordsman would have a hard time missing them, all the time. But she very rarely straight out asked him, especially not for trivial things, like ice cream.

"Of course, Nami-love," Sanji chirped, and pulled the door of the freezer open, only to remember something very important. _I forgotten about that…_

"I want pistachio-chocolate-caramel sea salt," Nami called again, as she went back to working on her maps.

 _Ah, shit, shit, shit, shit. Dammit Luffy._

"Ah, Nami... You remember how the guys like to bath together every week?" Sanji quavered.

Nami looked up again, deep irritation creating a tic on her forehead, "Why?"

"Well... Luffy may have decided that ice-cream would be amazing in the bath. And he may have brought in all the tubs of ice cream. And it may have all melted in the hot... steam..." Sanji trailed off, sincerely scared by the thundercloud developing on her face (and if he was honest, in the thunder egg over her head).

"ALL my ice cream?" Nami shrieked.

"I-I saved your orange-ginger sorbet..." Sanji offered up a half-empty tub. Technically, it wasn't her ice-cream - the Chocolate was Luffy's, the pistachio was Usopp's, and caramel sea salt was his. But he sensed there was no arguing with her in this mood.

"I don't want sorbet, I want Ice cream!" Nami scowled, glaring at him as if he was responsible for all of the cold, yummy goodness disappearing.

"I'll make more," Sanji offered. In his haste to get started and quell the gathering storm on her face, he fumbled the last bottle of cream he'd picked up, and spilled it all over the table and onto her maps, "Ah! Shit!"

"Ah! Mou!" Nami slammed her hands on the table and stomped to the door, slamming it behind her. She left a very upset and puzzled Sanji behind her, and a mess of maps and cream on the counter.

* * *

 _Back to the present..._

"Nami-san...," Robin didn't know what to say, except the very obvious, "That was a little uncalled for, don't you think?"

"I know!" Nami sniffed, burying her face in her pillow, "I just... I just... Waaaaah!"

"There, there," Robin sat down next to the sobbing girl and stroked her hair gently. A sneaking suspicion started to steal over her. Since the pudding incident, Sanji and Nami had had the tendency to disappear for a few hours in the evening, and couldn't be found unless there was an emergency, like a Sea King trying to eat the ship. They'd all learned to knock on the door of the Galley or the Library before entering, just in case (it was how Luffy had figured out the cook and the navigator were a little more than just crew mates). And Robin had had to pretend to be asleep on certain evenings, when Nami snuck back into their cabin, and Robin could smell Sanji's cigarette smoke from the door...

And Franky had been on deck more often in the evenings, instead of in his workshop or working on the Soldier Docking System. When Robin had asked him why, he'd blushed (She didn't know he could still do that), and said something about channel six being used.

 _But it couldn't be..._ Robin looked down at the younger woman, whose crying had been reduced to sniffles.

"Nami-san," Robin said, hesitantly, "How far... have the two of you gone? I mean... physically."

Nami looked up, surprised. "Gone? Gone where? We're still both on the Thousand Sunny."

"Ara, not that," Robin searched her mind for a better euphemism, "I mean, have you... Done the deed? Been intimate?"

Nami continued to look at her, in puzzlement. Robin was at a loss for words. Nami was twenty, but from what she'd gathered, she'd been very cut off from female company most of her life. First as a map slave for Arlong, a thief, and the village pariah, then she joined a crew of mostly male pirates, then she'd spent two years on an island of old men... could it be? The cat burgler obviously used her attractiveness as a knife in her thieving toolkit, but... And wouldn't Sanji have known? But for all Sanji's womanizing ways, he wasn't very successful at it. Maybe Zeff had just assumed Sanji's pervertedness and ridiculousness would be the best birth control.

 _Oh dear..._

"Nami-san," Robin held up her hands, "Have you guys done this?" Trying desperately to keep her poker face, she clenched her right hand into a loose fist, and stuck her left index finger into it, miming an in-and-out motion.

Nami stared at the archeologist blankly, dumbfounded by the slight blush on the other woman's cheeks. Then comprehension dawned, and Nami's face turned a bright hot red. She buried it into the pillow she was still clutching.

"So?" Robin asked.

Slowly, the orange head buried in the pillow went up and down.

"Oh dear, I was afraid of that," Robin sighed, "You guys didn't use a... let's call it a rain coat, did you?"

Nami peeked out at her, still blushing furiously, with a question in her eyes.

"Oh dear, oh dear," Robin didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She went to the door of the women's quarters and called out onto the deck, "Chopper-kun? Could you come here please?"

* * *

Sanji was just putting the finishing touches on his creation when Robin-chan knocked on the door of the Galley. He smiled winningly at her, but was surprised by the serious face he got in return, "What is it, Robin-chan? Do you need something?"

"You need to go talk to Nami-san. Right now. She's in the women's quarters," Robin's tone was much sterner than normal, and Sanji's heart hitched in his throat. Was something wrong with Nami? He hadn't seen her since the ice-cream episode a couple hours ago. He'd figured he should give her her space, first. Was she breaking it off with him?

"Wh-why? Is something wrong with Nami-san?" Sanji nearly fumbled the dessert he'd been making.

"You need to go talk to her," Robin repeated evenly. She glanced at the treat in his hands, and softened a little, "Bring that with you. I'll handle dinner."

Sanji didn't waste any more time with questions. He raced out of the galley, dessert half forgotten in his hand, apron strings flapping after him, and shot across the deck, cannoning right through the door of the women's quarters.

Chopper and Nami both looked up from where she was sitting on her bed, both with grave expressions. Fear clawed hard at his heart. Why was Chopper there? Was Nami-san sick?

"Nami-san?" Sanji asked, moving towards them slowly

"I'll give you two some privacy," Chopper murmured, and left the room, shutting it behind him.

Silence stretched between them. Nami wouldn't look at Sanji. The fear clawed a lot harder at him, and, unable to take the distance any more, he advanced, dropping to his knees before her.

"Nami-san," Sanji asked again. Nami looked away, but she didn't move away from him. The tear tracks on her face and the quiver in her lip was driving him mad, and the tension between them was choking him.

"I, ah, brought you some ice cream," Sanji said when he realized he was still carrying the dessert. "It's not really ice cream, it's mellorine, and I had to use the olive oil to make it, because we're out of cream, but I hope it's okay." Inside a cut crystal glass, three glorious greeny-yellow scoops of the frozen treat glistened. Sanji had added some caramel, sea salt, chocolate chips and pistachio slices, as well.

Nami took one look at it, then back at him, and then burst out crying all over again, flinging herself into his arms. They went tumbling back against the floor, Sanji taking the brunt of the hard landing to protect the love of his life and her dessert. Her arms were locked hard around his neck as she sobbed into his shoulder. He held her close to his heart, letting her sob it out and ruin his orange dress shirt. It was okay, he had a couple dozen of the orange shirts, since he knew it was Nami's favourite colour. He stroked her hair, murmuring soothing nothings to her, and thanked God or Buddha or whoever that he was the man lucky enough to be able to do this for her. Finally, her sobs started quieting down, so he shifted to put his back against the bed and more comfortably seat her in his lap.

"Here," He put the melting treat in her hands, still holding her close, "Why don't you eat this and tell me what's wrong?"

Nami nodded, still hiccuping a little, and put a spoonful into her mouth. Sanji watched, heart-glad, as the treat slowly brought back her own tiny smile.

"It's really good," Nami finally whispered between bites, her voice hoarse with crying, "Is this what you're always shouting about? Mellorine, mellorine?"

Sanji blushed, "Yeah."

"Why do you call pretty woman that, anyways?" Nami asked. Sanji knew she was just avoiding the earlier question, but answered her anyways to give her more time to settle. If she'd been angry with him or dumping him, she wouldn't be sitting in his lap eating his mellorine.

"It's just a pretty sound," He shrugged a little sheepishly, "When I learned the recipe as a kid, I thought it sounded exactly like what a pretty, sexy lady would eat. I've never had a reason to make it before, though."

Nami giggled as she finished the treat, and put the dish aside. Sanji couldn't help noticing that her lips were a little damp, and he bet she tasted like his mellorine, but he resisted. Now wasn't the time.

"Nami-love, what's wrong? Why was Chopper in here? And why does Robin-chan look like she wants to cut my head off?" Sanji asked her again.

Nami looked down again, but Sanji wasn't having any of that. He gently lifted her chin up to him, and placed a kiss on her lips. In that kiss, he tried to convey all the affection, adoration, admiration, and love in his heart for her. He tried to convey his feelings, that he would be there for her, no matter what happened, and that she could rely on him, in that kiss. When she responded with similar ardour and ferver, his heart healed a little. This was love.

"Sanji..." Nami sighed, as she put her hands on his chest and drew nervous patterns there, "I'm pregnant."

* * *

Nami's heart plummeted as she felt Sanji freeze beneath her hands. Oh no... He wouldn't...

"P-P-P-Pregnant?!" he stammered, framing her face in his hands. She saw panic and fear burning in his blue eyes as they frantically searched her face, "You're sure?"

She nodded, "Chopper just did the test. I'm only 8 weeks along, so it's still a little dangerous, but -"

She squeaked as Sanji shot to his feet, swinging her up in his arms. He danced her around the room in giddy excitement.

"A baby! Oh god, Nami-love, you scared me! We're going to be having a baby! I'm going to be the best Papa!" Sanji crowed, his face beaming with excitement. He was so excited, he was actually doing the jump-heel-click step. With her in his arms! The absurdity of the situation made Nami start to laugh.

She hadn't expected this reaction. Fear, yes. Denial, maybe. But absolute joy? Not in a hundred years. "Sanji-kun, I love you," She giggled, wiping her eyes.

Sanji stopped at the declaration, as if he suddenly realized that he was doing a dangerous dance step with the mother of his child in his arms. He immediately, but gently, put her down on her bed with all the care due to the crown jewels. He placed his forehead to hers, and smiled back at her, "I love you too, Nami-love. We're going to be the best parents. I'm going to make all your favourites, and make sure you and our baby are healthy and well-fed."

Fear and uncertainty squirmed in the belly (or maybe it was just the hormones), "I'm scared, Sanji. We're so young, and we're on this adventure, and it's not a good time, but..."

Sanji placed a finger against her lips, "I'm scared, too. But we'll be okay. There's no one else for me, Nami-love, and I think you'll make a wonderful mom. You know Luffy, our crew will help, and it'll work out somehow." Nami smiled, despite her fears. It was true.

"Of course we will!" Luffy's shout came from the other side of the door, followed by a loud "shhh!"

Sanji and Nami looked at each other, then broke out laughing. The kiss they shared to mark the sweet moment, born from an accident, tasted like mellorine.

* * *

More fluff! All the fluff! Now that this chapter is written, I can confess that the inspiration for this story came from a tumblr user's (sanjiafsincedayone) Crazy Sanami theory, where they posit that Nami's actually preggers (you should read it, it's a lot of fun as a headcannon). Someone else pointed it out to me that timeline wasn't long enough for it to be actually true, but the idea kind of stuck, and mutated in my mind, and here we are now! I actually had a very long debate with myself about all the questions I have about birth control and sex-ed in the OP world, but considering it's a shounen manga, I don't think they'd ever be answered. Let's just all suspend our disbelief so I can write Nami pregnant with Sanji's baby, okay?

I hope you enjoyed it! Next chapter we deal with the practicalities of actually having a baby on board the Thousand Sunny, so see you then!


	3. Chapter 3: Sweet Milk Tea

**Sweets Romance - Third Quarto - Sweet Milk Tea**

All the standard disclaimers apply. One Piece is owned by (g)Oda-sensei, and I am a mere fan girl gleaning crumbs of his genius. I make no profit off his work.

* * *

Sweet Milk Tea: Sweetened tea brewed with milk popular in Asia.

* * *

 _I'm going to make a bed in the library tomorrow night._

It was about the only thought that Nami could muster the energy for these nights as she lurched out of bed like a zombie stumbling out of her grave. It wasn't supposed to be so bad in her second trimester, but she swore that this morning sickness (it wasn't even morning, for crying out loud) was worse.

Robin stirred in the other bed, and Nami cursed under her breath. "Do you need any help, Nami-san?" The other woman offered, rubbing her eyes as she propped herself up her elbow.

"No, it's okay, go back to bed," Nami waved her back to bed with one hand as she covered her mouth with the other. She really hoped no one saw her like this. Her hair was a tangled nest around her head, there were bags big enough to store luggage in under her eyes, and her breath smelled so bad she could probably light it on fire. She still had her pride, after all.

"Alright," Robin murmured, and turned away from her pregnant friend. As her friend closed the door after her, Robin sent a quick signal on the baby transponder snail by her bed. It never hurt to be careful, after all.

* * *

Nami regretted her pride as soon as she was struck by a wave of dizziness and slipped on the stairs. Dry fear clutched at her throat as she tried to twist her body mid fall to protect her abdomen, but she knew it wouldn't be enough. "Ahhhh! Sanji!"

"Nami! Sky walk!" Sanji ran down from Zoro's crow nest and training room, and caught her just before she landed, "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah. I was just a little dizzy," She tried to smile reassuringly at him, but didn't try to make him put her down.

"Oi, nosebleed cook!" Zoro yelled, sticking his head out the window, "You're not supposed to run away when we're sparring!"

"Shut up, mosshead!" Sanji snarled back. Nami could feel the heat rise off his body, but his grip on her was gentle. She absently stroked a hand down his arm to calm him down, but as always, the two of them were like wet cats and dogs.

"What are you all yelling about?" Luffy complained, sticking his head out the boy's dorm. "Ah, Usopp! Chopper! Stop pushing!" His neck turned his head back to yell at the two who were trying to exit the boy's dorm at the same time.

"Why don't you come up here and make me, Dartboard brow?" Zoro yelled back at Sanji.

"Yohohoho!" Brook burst out laughing.

"Why are you laughing?" Franky glanced askance at the skeleton, who was standing beside him, behind the tangle of limbs that was Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy stuck in the door.

"I told you to shut up, marimo! You'll disturb Nami-san!"

"Because - Yohohohoho! Luffy-san is - Yohoho - Luffy-san! You're pulling my leg!" Brook got pulled into the brawl in the doorway.

"Oi, oi," Franky deadpanned. He didn't even try to get involved, he just grabbed himself a cola. _This could take a while to work out..._

"Put her down and get back up here, you dumbass cook!"

"Ah! Brook, what are you doing here?"

"No way, you shitty swordsman! She's pregnant!"

"WHAT?!" Zoro, Usopp, Franky and Brook shouted.

Everyone froze on the Thousand Sunny, even though Brook was mid-prying his foot out of Luffy's hand while his other foot was on Chopper's head, and Usopp was in the middle of dislodging his arm from Chopper's mouth while simultaneously accidentally strangling Luffy.

"I thought she was just getting fat," Usopp muttered. If Nami hadn't been so exhausted, she would've punched him.

"Arara," Robin appeared on the other side of the deck in her fluffy black terry cloth robe, "Well, I suppose that cat is out of its bag. Why don't we have some milk tea and discuss this in the Galley?"

Overwhelmed, Nami burst into tears.

"EHHHH?!"

* * *

"NO!" Luffy exploded, "No, no, no, no!" He pounded his fist on the table so hard it shook.

"Luffy, it would be safer-," Zoro started.

"No way!" Luffy yelled, shaking his head back and forth so hard his neck got twisted into some knots, "We just got Sanji back! And the LAST time we lost Sanji, I was so hungry! I'm not doing that again!"

"Not to mention it would be hard without Nami-san," Brook said. "None of us know how to navigate the extreme weather of the New World without her."

"Here you go, Nami-san," Robin sprouted arms all over the galley to pass around the cups of sweet milk tea.

"Why are we drinking this?" Zoro complained, glaring at his cup.

"Because it's the only thing I can drink right now," Nami mumbled. She looked pale and unusually fragile, and Sanji was still cradling her in his lap. Zoro looked at her, then to the vodka Robin was adding to his drink, and shrugged. Even Franky took his cup without complaint.

"I'm a little worried," Chopper admitted. He fiddled with his cup. "A lot of mothers didn't like to have me in the room while they were in labour. Doctor Rin made sure I studied it, but pre-natal care is the branch of Medicine I have the least practical experience with. I can't even be in brain point when delivering the baby, because, well..." He raised his hoofs.

"If it's hands you need, I can help," Robin offered as she took her seat.

"Yeah," Chopper smiled at the archaeologist.

"We're counting on you, Robin-chan, Chopper," Sanji said quietly, looking at his two crew mates with gratitude. Nami nodded and smiled weakly, adding her own wordless thanks.

"Why don't we just go back to the East Blue and leave the child there?" Franky frowned. Robin glanced at him, and knew he was remembering his own pirate parents who abandoned him on Water 7.

"That's right!" Usopp latched onto the idea, "What about your sister, Nami, or the staff at the Baratie? That would be safer."

"Absolutely not," this refusal was quiet, but even more absolute and surprising, considering it came from Luffy. The rest of the crew looked at him in surprise. He was looking on the scorched inner brim of his Straw Hat, where Ace's Vivre card had been. "Akainu killed Ace because he was Roger's son. They may go after you guys because you're part of my crew, and I don't want that! I'm going to be King of the Pirates!"

There was a moment of silence as they all contemplated the truth of this statement.

"Besides, a woman worth 66 million berries exhausted after child birth may be too tempting a target. What's the highest bounty in the East Blue? 25 million berries?" Brook reasoned

"10 million," Zoro, the former East Blue bounty hunter, corrected him. He tapped the edge of the sword on the table. "You're right. If we all went, we'd make ourselves a target, and I wouldn't feel good about just sending the shitty cook."

"What does that mean, you shitty swordsman?" Sanji demanded hotly.

"Zoro's right, Sanji," Franky spoke up. The milk tea had mellowed him out, "It'd be better to stay together. We're a crew, and we depend on you guys. But you guys can rely on us, too."

Nami felt Sanji's hands tighten around her, but he didn't say anything. She was too tired to think too much of it, but she did place a comforting hand on Sanji's chest. He looked down and smiled at her, but she felt the burning intensity in his eyes.

"Nami-san?" Robin asked her gently, putting her hand on the younger girl's knee to get the other girl's attention.

Nami forced her attention back to the Archeologist. "Mmm?"

"What do you want to do? Sanji-san?" Robin looked at the brooding cook.

"I'll go with what Nami wants. I trust her judgement," Sanji said simply, unclenching his teeth for the response.

Nami struggled to focus. Do? What did she want to do? With what? Unconsciously, she placed her hand on her abdomen, and remembered the new life growing there. Then she looked around the table. Her friends. Her crewmates. People she loved and respected and trusted. Then she looked at the man holding her tightly, but gently. God help her, but she loved him so much. That they'd accidentally created a life scared her witless, but she loved him. She made her decision.

"I want what's best for the child," Nami started slowly, despite her exhaustion, "Bell-mere would expect me to." She paused, remembering the ghostly shove out the door of her childhood home, "But I also want my dream. I want to be selfish, guys. I want to make the world map, and I want to raise the child on the Thousand Sunny. And I've put too much work getting you guys this far to see you sunk by lightning rain, nor would I want to see you all starve. Will you guys help?"

Sanji remembered what Nojiko had told them about Bell-mere, and the ultimate sacrifice she had made for her two young daughters. Maybe she would have approved of Nami's plan, maybe not, but either way, Sanji vowed to her that he would protect Nami, her dream, and their child with his life.

"Of course!" Luffy exclaimed. The rest of the crew nodded or showed their approval in their own ways.

"Typical Nami," Zoro grumbled, but Nami suspected the smallest hint of a smile from the swordsman.

"It'll be dangerous," Usopp worried.

"When is it not?" Nami retorted, "Besides, Sanji can protect me." She smiled up at Sanji, but Nami was distracted by Chopper getting her attention to talk about her prenatal vitamins and Franky mentioning something about turning the library into a room for the two of them while shrinking the Girl's room so it would just be comfortable for Robin, to see that there was no answering smile in Sanji's eyes.

* * *

"Marines starboard!" Usopp yelled from the lookout midday a few days later, "It's a lot of them, and I think I see two Pacifistas!"

"Everyone get ready!" Nami yelled, taking a place near the wheel, sorcery Climatact in hand. She didn't want to risk the crows nest in her condition, but she wasn't incapable. When Sanji stayed at her side, she glared at him.

"What are you doing? You should be out there with Zoro and Luffy! They're going to need your help!" She scolded him. Sanji didn't respond, just looked at her with serious eyes.

"No, we don't," Zoro called over his shoulder, "He'd be useless. Leave him there." He tied on his bandana.

Sanji snarled, but didn't yell at Zoro, which was rare enough. Nami's irritation rose to volcanic levels and exploded.

"I am a fully grown woman who can protect myself!" She yelled at her lover, "Trust me to do my job, and go do your fucking job! We're pirates, not cute children in love, for crying out loud!"

Even in the middle of the military situation, the other Straw Hats stopped in shock. Sanji's face shuttered, and Nami instantly regretted what she said, even if it was the hormones. He turned away first before she could get out the words to apologize. Zoro scanned Sanji's face as he joined the other two on the starboard side to face down the incoming fleet.

And it was a fleet. There were nearly 20 ships, all fully crewed with nearly 300 marines each and bristling with guns. They'd sighted the Straw Hat Jolly Roger, as the fleet was charging at them at full speed, all 6000 Marines howling for blood. "I can see two pacifistas on the two biggest ships in the middle," Usopp called from the bird's nest, "I see two vice admirals as well. No one we've met, but they're vice-admirals by their capes. New World vice-admirals," He shivered, "Franky, can't we just coup de burst away right now and not fight them?"

"Nami?" Franky asked, looking to their navigator for direction.

"No, we need to go straight through them," Nami called back, looking at the vivre card and her log pose, "Luffy, Zoro, Sanji-kun, just blast us a way through. It'll take too long if you destroy all the ships, and we should go fast. Can you do it?"

"Yep," Luffy exclaimed.

"Don't ask stupid questions," Zoro scoffed.

Sanji didn't say anything, just calmly lit another cigarette. That was strange enough, Zoro thought. The idiot cook never missed a chance to fawn over Nami. And there was something... off, about his aura. Zoro shrugged it off. That asshole better not steal the other Pacifista from him again.

"Fire!" The Marines finally reached firing range and launched the first volley.

"Gum Gum Shield!" Luffy sucked in air to turn his body into a giant balloon, bouncing the cannon balls back at them. As soon as he did, Zoro and Sanji took off.

"1080 pound cannon!" Zoro fired his technique at a Vice Admiral's ship, slicing cleaning through the Pacifista and lopping off half the ship's deck and one of its masts as well. The falling mast pinned the unfortunate Marine under the mast, while his men ran around like chickens who couldn't figure out how to deal with an airborne swords man.

"Gum Gum Elephant gun!" One of Luffy's giant fists slammed straight into the pacifista while the other slammed into the Vice Admiral, who had tried to dodge, but hadn't moved fast enough.

Strange, what was the perverted cook doing? Not going for the Pacifista... Zoro didn't have time to look around as he methodically cut the ship into enough small pieces that it would never sail again. Luffy's elephant gatling was doing a good job of smashing the other vice admiral ship.

They both landed back on the decks of the Sunny, looking for their next targets, only to realize...

There were none left?

"W-wow... Nice job, Sanji," Usopp goggled

"AH! No fair, Sanji!" Luffy complained.

"Che," Zoro sneered at the cook. What the hell was that asshole thinking? Sanji had destroyed the other 18 ships in the time it'd taken Zoro and Luffy to destroy the two vice Admirals, their flag ships, and the Pacifistas. Each one looked like an iceberg had fallen through the deck, and their crews were desperately trying to pull their mates out of the water. Instead of his normal red flames, Sanji was covered in blue flames.

"O-Okay, then. Full speed ahead," Nami was surprised as well, but she recovered enough to give Franky the go ahead nod. Franky nodded to show he'd understood, then tilted his chin at Sanji in a "Go to him" gesture. Nami gave him a grateful nod.

"Sanji-kun," Nami called as she made her way across the deck to the point where the men were standing, interrupting Luffy's complaining. Zoro saw her coming and started to pull Luffy away in a headlock.

Sanji maintained his frigid silence, and didn't even turn around as Nami moved to touch his shoulder. She flinched. _That's cold!_ The blue flames coming off him were icy and chilled her fingers. Bracing herself, she put her hand on his arm anyways.

"Sanji-kun-" She tried again.

Suddenly, she felt one hand grab her around her torso, and another rough, sword callused hand clamp down on her mouth, and she was being hauled away from the Sunny and into the Ocean, "MMMPFTH!"

* * *

"Got one!" The Marine crowed as he sailed towards his cheering comrades on the other side of the Sunny. Nami was struggling so hard in his arms that Chopper was afraid she might hurt herself or the baby. Her eyes were full of fear as she saw the hard landing they were heading for.

"Nami!" Robin exclaimed, rushing to the edge. The other straw hats took a moment to recover from the suddenness of the kidnapping. The Marine had been standing on the tip of one of the sinking ships they'd been sailing by, but none of them had figured any of the defeated marines for a threat. Sanji's icy composure cracked as he spun around to find his love in the hands of their enemy, hurtling towards the freezing ocean, but Zoro was already on the move.

"ONI GIRI!" He broke the Marine's neck with one carefully aimed swipe, and grabbed Nami when the asshole's grip loosened. Zoro scowled. None of them had been paying attention because they'd wanted to give Nami and Sanji some privacy. _See where that got them._

"Here," Zoro landed back on the deck, and dumped Nami into Sanji's arms, "Take care of your own woman."

* * *

Nami was worried. Sanji hadn't said anything to her, to anybody - not even in response to Zoro's snark. He'd simply held her tightly, turned on his heel and headed straight for the infirmary, gently depositing her on the sick bay bed for Chopper to check over. He hadn't even waited to see if Chopper thought everything was okay - She highly doubted anything was wrong, but still. She would have liked his hand to hold onto as she recovered from the shock. Chopper had looked her over, determined everything was okay, and had left her with strict orders to rest and recover, just in case.

Most of the others had visited in one way or another. Usopp had stopped by to tell her ridiculous lies that she'd heard a hundred times before, while Chopper and Luffy had listened in, credulous as always. Franky had stopped and left a bottle of cola (that her morning sickness wouldn't let her drink, but it was a nice thought). Brook had been serenading her from the deck the entire afternoon with some music that was supposed to be good for the baby. Robin had even stopped in with her dinner, a hearty chicken soup, and was still with her, reading a book in the corner. Zoro hadn't stopped by, but that wasn't that surprising.

"Nami-san?" Robin looked up at her. Nami realized that she had been sighing, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, really," Nami plucked at the infirmary blanket.

Robin raised an eyebrow, waited on the younger woman.

"H-have you seen Sanji?" Nami finally asked.

"No," Robin admitted, "There was just a pot on the stove for lunch." Her eyes met Nami's and there was sympathy in them.

Nami groaned and buried her face into her knees, "I screwed up." She admitted, "I screwed up really badly."

Robin shut her book and brought her chair closer to the bed, "Yes, you did."

Nami scowled at her, "Who's side are you on?"

"The honest one," Robin merely smiled back. Nami buried her head back in her knees again.

"I don't know how to apologize," she confessed.

"I'm sorry is a good place to start," Robin prompted.

"But I'm not, not exactly," Nami wailed, "Because I can protect myself and we should be acting like pirates!"

"Nami...," Robin didn't have to say anything. Nami knew how selfish and silly she sounded.

"Alright, alright," Nami sighed, propping her chin on her knees, "What can I do?"

"Try putting yourself in his position, Nami-san," Robin suggested, then looked up at the thump on the door. They were surprised to see Zoro standing there.

"You need to get Sanji out of my training room," Zoro said, "He's pushing himself too hard."

Both women stared. Zoro? Saying someone was training too hard?

"C'mon. I'll help you up there. Chopper said you can get up now," Zoro cocked his thumb.

"O-okay," Nami gingerly swung her legs off the bed. She thought of something and then paused, "Actually, I need to go to the kitchen first.

* * *

 _3728, 3729, 3730..._

"Oi, Moron," Sanji's concentration was broken when Zoro yelled at him from the porthole.

"Shut up, asshole," Sanji didn't even look at him as he came in.

"Fine, I'll take the present I brought for you back downstairs," Zoro retorted.

The idea of Zoro bringing him a present was so absurd that Sanji couldn't resist looking. Hell, his concentration was already shot. His eyes widened when he realized that by present, Zoro meant a sheepish looking Nami clutching a thermos.

"Don't let her be captured again, asshole," was Zoro's parting shot as he went back down to the main deck.

Nami was nervous. Sanji still wasn't saying anything, and the silence was starting to weigh on her nerves. He was taking a break, though, so that was something.

The break gave her a chance to just admire Sanji. As much as she appreciated his usual sartorial sharpness, she couldn't help but stare at him now, when he'd stripped to a pair of loose black cotton pants and towel slung carelessly around his neck. She'd blame the urge on the hormones, even if it was the urge that had gotten her the hormones. His hair was wet gold against his brow, and sweat lovingly highlighted every toned muscle he had. He had such a spare frame, not one extra ounce of fat or muscle just for bulk. It made his lines so elegant, from the tapering of shoulders to waist, the definition of his legs, and the smooth line from shoulders to delicate fingertips.

Nami really wanted to straddle his lap, wipe his brow, and kiss the tenseness and anger from his jaw line. It was that tenseness and anger that made her hesitate to move towards him. It was the intense emotion in his laser blue eyes, focused entirely on her at the moment, that convinced her to walk towards him, put the thermos down, and take the towel from him to minister to him herself. His concentration never left her, and Nami had an uncomfortable feeling that her soul was being searched.

"I'm selfish, cowardly, and an emotional mess right now," She began. She was focusing intensely on the task of dabbing sweat off his brow, but she felt him tense under her hands, "You may be the prince, but I'm the one with the princess attitude. I try not to think too hard about us because I'm afraid that you'll wake up and realize you've made a terrible mistake."

"Nami," Sanji started, but she put a fingers on his lips to stop the comforting words she knew he would say, and mean, and would make her feel even worse. Apologies sucked.

"I'm a terrible bet, Sanji, and I don't want you to realize it," She gave him a wry smile, "I selfishly asked you, and everyone else to let me stay aboard even as a mother, and I don't want anyone to regret it. I also don't want you to regret it. Any of it. Not the pudding, not the virginity, not the baby, not any of it. I'm afraid that if I constantly rely on you to save me, because I know you could, all the time, you will realize that I'm a selfish, cowardly, emotional mess, and you will regret it, and-"

"Nami," This time, Sanji didn't take no for an answer and pulled her into his arms. It was too much for him. He didn't say anything, but sank to the floor with her in his arms and held her for an endless moment. Nami allowed herself to burrow closer to his heart, and he pulled her even closer to him.

 _Badump. Badump... ba... dump..._

He suddenly pulled back and rained kisses on her face, punctuating each one with her name. "Nami, Nami, Nami," He smiled at her, tender and sweet and full of love. It was the first real one she'd seen since the meeting in the Galley. "If you trust me to protect you, I could never regret you, Nami-love. Never, never, never." She got a fresh rain of kisses on her face, and a longer, more caring one on her lips.

"Really?" She asked in a small voice. Internally, she was cringing a little. Non-hormonal Nami was strong and would have never asked such an insecure question. Maybe Pregnant Nami got something right every once and a while.

"Really," Sanji affirmed. "Do you trust me to protect you, Nami? Will you trust me with your life? Will you trust me with your dreams and hopes? Will you trust me with our child's life?"

"Of course," Nami blinked in surprise that he asked, "I always have."

His smile was bittersweet as he brushed a lock of hair from her face, "I was angry at you and everyone else. That they didn't trust me to care for you, to protect you."

"It wasn't that!" Nami interrupted, "They just didn't think you should do it alone, that you should also have someone to watch your back. We're not alone in this, Sanji. We have a family."

"I see," Sanji's smile disappeared as he continued "Then I was mad at myself when their lack of faith was right, and you got snatched right under my nose because I was mad at you. And that shitty swordsman saved you." Sanji scowled even more deeply at the memory, then remembered something, "Why was that asshole carrying you up here, anyways?"

"Ah," Nami recalled, and picked up the thermos, "I wanted to bring this up, and I didn't trust my balance," She patted the slight swell of her belly, then took the cap off and poured some of the hot, fragrant liquid inside into it. "Robin said to put myself in your place, and you're always bringing me drinks, so... here." She blew on it to cool it down, then handed it to him, "It's hot sweet milk tea. I've gotten pretty good at making it these past few months. I thought we could share a drink."

Touched, Sanji took the offered cup. They sat there in comfortable silence, Nami curled in Sanji's lap, his back against the wall, her's against his chest, and their hearts beating against each other in unity as they watched the sun set over the wide sea. It was perfect.

"Ah!" Nami exclaimed as she went to receive the cup. She spilled it down her T-shirt and onto Sanji's pants. Something had jostled her elbow. It took her a second to realize that it was her abdomen, "Sanji, look! The Baby! It-She-He- They kicked!"

Sanji's eyes widen as his hands flew away from her body where they'd been caressing lazy circles, "Wh-Wh-What?" He gaped at her, wild panic in his blue eyes.

"Here!" Excitedly, she grabbed one of his hands and put it on her belly, "See? There, again! Wow, our baby is strong," She winced a little then grinned slyly at Sanji, "Just like their papa."

Sanji blushed and laughed, "They'll be beautiful and smart, just like their mama." They touched noses, and Sanji felt his heart overflowed with love.

It was the best moment of his life.

* * *

It was the worst moment of his life.

For the rest of his life, Sanji would never fully remember that two on two fight with Nami against Laffitte and Jesus Burgess. They'd been protecting the Sunny, with Chopper and Robin, while the others had gone after Blackbeard for Luffy's revenge. Nami had known that Sanji wanted to go with Luffy, help their Captain take their revenge, and they'd all known the day would come when they'd clash with Blackbeard Pirates. But he stayed, with her, because of the baby. Even though Nami was due any day, she'd managed to hide her belly from their enemies with sweaters. Chopper had theorized that Nami's body had adapted to make the bump as unnoticeable as possible.

Four of the Blackbeard Pirates had had the same idea as the Straw Hats. Jesus Burgess, Laffitte, Catriona Devon, and Dr. Strange had attacked. Sanji didn't remember the fight. They'd been fine, with Nami supporting Sanji with ranged attacks on her climatact, until a shockwave from Burgess's attack knocked Nami over, and she'd instinctively twisted to protect her abdomen, landed on her back.

All Sanji remembered was that moment of sly calculation on that bastard Laffitte's face. When Sanji was caught grappling with Jesus Burgess, Laffitte went straight for Nami's belly.

Crack. The sound of Laffitte's stomp hitting the ground was one that would echo in Sanji's nightmares for a good, long time. He kicked Burgess off, spinning to look at where the love of his life lay in horror.

She'd just barely dodged it, weak and wounded as she was. Laffitte's next kick was aimed at her back to break her spine, and there was a long knife blade at the tip of his shoe.

Hell erupted when Sanji lost it. He never spoke about that fight again, and Nami only remembered a delirium dream of flames and an inferno all around her. When Burgess hauled his scorched, beat-up body up to look for his crewmate, he could only find a Laffitte shaped shadow on the rocks nearby.

But Sanji hadn't cared about that. He'd picked up Nami and run for her life, back to the Sunny where Chopper would hopefully be. She'd been so weak, and the second heartbeat that he'd been sensing for months wasn't as strong either. _Please, God, let them live!_

Sanji charged past the heaps that were Dr. Strange and Catriona Devon, and exploded onto the deck past Chopper and Robin, "Nami-Please-help-fading," He got out, gently laying her on the infirmary bed before sinking to his knees in exhaustion.

Robin rushed in carrying an immobile Chopper, and Sanji felt his heart sink.

"Robin... I can't... even... give you a... hoof," Chopper gasped out.

"It's okay, doctor-san," Robin laid him down gently, and summoned her last reserves of energy, "Just tell me what to do. NEW BODY." One of the Robins placed a gentle hand on Sanji's arm, "She'll be okay."

Sanji didn't stop. He used every technique, every secret, every skill he'd ever learned to make them food and keep himself from going insane from worry. Broths to get Chopper back on his feet more quickly, something that could get Robin's energy back fast, and give her reserves, something for the crew for when they came back victorious, and most importantly, anything that might give Nami and their baby the best chance for survival.

And Sanji held her hand as Nami screamed. And prayed to every god he knew.

Seven gruelling hours later, during which crew had returned, seen what was happening, and had immediately turned back around to guard the ship, it was finally over.

"Thank goodness," Chopper exclaimed, collapsing into his chair. He'd turned back three hours into the ordeal.

Robin laid the swaddled, cleaned, squalling bundle into a trembling Sanji's hands, "Here, Papa-san. Congratulations, you have a healthy, loud daughter." As soon as the baby was out of her hands, she collapsed into a chair as well.

Sanji carried his daughter as if she was made of the finest porcelain, bring his face close to her crying red one. Her hair was a soft down over her forehead, and her eyes were squeezed shut, but as he watched her, adoringly, she stopped crying and opened her milky eyes. His heart, battered by worry and scarred by fear of the past eight hours, the past nine months, was made whole by her gumless wide smile.

"Hello my little angel," He cooed, rocking her gently, "Daddy's going to give you the world."

Nami watched the two at the foot of her bed with an exhausted but happy smile from where she was propped up. She'd fought for her daughter's life and hung onto her own by her fingernails, but for that moment, with Sanji holding their daughter and grinning like a fool, it was all worth it. He came around her bed to hand her their daughter and took a seat beside the bed.

"Hello sunshine," Nami placed light kisses all over the baby's face as she took the her into her arms.

"Is it out yet?!" Luffy came crashing through door, making them all look up - even the baby turned in the direction of the door, "Let me see!" Luffy's neck stretched so that his head was right up close to the baby's. The two stared at each other, Luffy with uncharacteristic seriousness, the baby with her barely open newborn's eyes. Then Luffy turned to Nami and asked, "Neh, how does it poop?"

Sanji and Nami smacked him at the same time.

* * *

"Mello."

Sanji looked over to Nami from the crib where he was tucking their daughter in for the precious few hours they would get. Usopp had made the crib and outfitted it with dials so it was heated and rocked itself, and transmitted any sounds to the dial either parent carried at all time, and it was doing the trick now as the baby fell asleep. They were ensconced in the little room that used to be the library, and Nami was still resting in bed on strict instructions from Chopper.

"Huh?" He asked, feeling like he'd missed part of the conversation somewhere.

"Mello. I think we should call her Mello, like Mellorine," Nami smiled dotingly at the crib. She'd been holding Mello for the past couple hours, but because her eyelids were getting heavy, had given her to Sanji to put into her crib. Sanji hadn't been able to resist holding her and rocking her for a bit longer, but even he had finally put her in the crib after the sun had set and he'd felt the exhaustion of the day start to finally creep over him.

"Really?" Sanji raised one curly eyebrow at her. He kicked off his slippers and stripped off his dress shirt to climb in bed with her.

Nami grinned, "You gave me Mellorine when I told you I was pregnant. Besides, you say it when you see beautiful women, right? I don't think you'll see anyone more beautiful than our daughter any time soon."

"Well, I'm looking at you right now, aren't I? Then again, I'm still pretty convinced that you're a goddess," Sanji smiled, kissing her gently on the forehead, "Mello it is, then. Would you like me to make you some sweet milk tea as a nightcap?"

Nami groaned, flopping back into her pillows, "No! No more sweet milk tea. I've drunk enough to float the damn Sunny on in these past nine months, and I want some booze!"

Grinning, Sanji pulled the champagne bottle and two flutes from where he'd stashed them earlier in the day. He knew his woman.

* * *

Holy crap this was a monstrosity. Didn't help that my keyboard stopped working about halfway through the writing, so the second half took a heck of a lot longer to write than the first half. I may also have been exaggerating a wee bit when I said we'd deal with the practicalities. How are they carting a baby around Raftel? How are they going to find the one piece with a baby in tow? That, dear readers, I will leave to your imagination.

Anyways, I really hope you enjoyed this installment. I think I still need to work on my action scenes, they've always been my weakest point, but I'm hoping you enjoy the more strawhatness of this installment And yes, for those eagle eyed readers, I have purposely written in opportunities for lemons. I'm already planning a matching four part series in the same world called "Lemon Romance", if I can get myself drunk enough to write it.

A few notes on other things:

Yes, I did start with the idea that Mello would be the name for the daughter. Further digging into the reason Sanji always yells Mellorine when he meets a pretty girl (because honestly the imitation ice cream theory makes no damn sense), is that he's really saying "Mero" ("Falling in love", like Boa Hancock's devil fruit) + "Rin", which I attribute to the seemingly Japanese habit of adding a suffix onto everything. So I thought it would be a nice play on words to use Mello as their child's name, because I'd imagined them falling in love with their kid on first sight, big softies they are.

Also, Nami drinking even though she's breast feeding at the end: as a rule, Mothers who are breastfeeding are not supposed to drink alcohol for fear of passing on the poison to their child's immature livers. But it seems like it's okay so long as they don't breastfeed soon afterwards, to give the mother's own liver to process it, and Nami seems to have a champion liver. I figured that a) Drinking is too much a part of Nami's character for her to go 100% stone sober like that, and b) Sanji could probably figure out the right amounts so that nothing bad happens to their baby.

The next and last installment will be about how the newest addition interacts with the Pirate King's crew, 9 years later. And yes, there will be Papa-bear Sanji and Mama Nami, and Aunt Robin, and Uncle all the other straw hats and maybe a bit of gag Zorobin or Frobin, – I'll have to see which one works better. As always, thank you to the reviewers and the kudo-ers and everyone else who stops in to let me know they enjoyed my work – any comments or constructive criticism or whatever is always welcome!


	4. Chapter 4: Onigiri

_Onigiri – Rice formed in triangular or cylinder shapes, often wrapped in Nori and filled with something._

* * *

Zoro prized his solitude.

And quiet.

"UNCLE ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOROOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Mostly because these days, he didn't get enough of it. That damned brat. That idiot love cook probably sent her up here on purpose.

A small, red head poked up through the floor of his training room. Her wide blue eyes lit up when they spotted the swordsman doing some one fingered push-ups with a couple tons on his back. Zoro wanted to swear a lot, but he didn't, because the kid was nine, and way too smart for his good. He hadn't had a moment of peace since she'd figured out how to climb the mast last year.

"Uncle Zoro! What are you doing? Can you teach me to be the world's best swordswoman?" the rest of Mello's body finally wriggled through the trap door of the crows nest. She was a scrawny thing, Zoro mused. If he didn't see the elaborate meals that Sanji regularly prepared for his daughter behind Nami's back, he'd think the kid wasn't getting enough to eat. She was wearing a cute blue T-Shirt and black shorts (a present from Pappug the last time they'd visited Fishman's Island), but he wasn't sure that black streak was supposed to be on the T-shirt. Then again, what the hell did Zoro know about kid's fashions?

Zoro scowled at her. "No."

Mello's lower lip stuck out in a pout, and trembled a bit. "Is it because I'm a girl, and I'm weaker than the boys?"

Zoro thought of another young girl who'd wanted to be the world's strongest swordswoman, "No."

"Then whyyyyyyy?" Mello whined. The swordsman gritted his teeth. God, that sound was annoying. He had a sneaking suspicion that the brat knew how much he hated it.

"Because I said so," Zoro replied.

Mello took a deep breath to whine even louder (Zoro was debating how fast he could shift his weight to plug at least one ear without dropping the tons on his back), when the trapdoor opened again. Thank god. Rescue. His relief turned to even more annoyance when he realized who his rescuer was.

"There you are, Mello-chan," Sanji said as he, too, entered the room. He surveyed his daughter's smudged top and the mess of her red bob, "What are you doing here with smelly Uncle Marimo?"

"Oi, like you're one to talk, you ero-cook!" Zoro shot back.

"Not in front of my daughter, you shit head!" Sanji shot back, then froze when he caught sight of his daughter's smirk.

"Relax, Papa, I won't tell Mama that you were swearing," She grinned, "In return..."

"In return, I won't tell her you were trying to skip your history lessons with Aunt Robin," Sanji headed his daughter off quickly. She was adorable, but she'd gotten all of her mother's craftiness.

Mello groaned, "I don't want to learn boring old history!" She complained, "I want to learn the three swords style and be a swordswoman like Uncle Zoro!"

"And I said no," Zoro scowled.

Sanji glared at him, but spoke to his daughter, "You don't have to learn that ugly style, Mello-chan. I'll teach you to kick like Papa."

"I don't wanna," The quick refusal shocked Sanji and made Zoro laugh at his rival.

"Mello-chan!" Sanji cried out, tearing up a little.

"I get motion sick when you spin me that quickly," Mello protested defensively.

Sanji's dejected huddling against the wall only made Zoro howl louder. He remembered the last time they'd had to fight on land with Mello. She'd had to hang onto her dad, and she'd puked all over Sanji mid-fight. Man, the idiot cook was pathetic. Sulking because of something a little girl said? It was really pathetic.

"C'mon Papa," Mello begged. She knew her daddy. He was so sad when he got into this kind of funk, and it took forever to get him out of it. She sighed, giving up, "I'll go study with Aunt Robin if you give me a cooking lesson later."

That perked Sanji right up. "Alright Princess," He jumped up as if he hadn't been planting mushrooms in the corner a minute ago, and took her hand, "Let's go then." Sanji stuck his tongue out at Zoro as he shifted Mello onto his back and started descending the mast.

Zoro grunted. Finally. Some damn peace and quiet.

* * *

"Joyboy promised to come meet the mermaid princess, who was also one of the ancient weapons known as Poseidon, but couldn't because -," Robin stopped when she realized her pupil was fascinated, but not by history. She cleared her throat. Mello's head jerked up guiltily

"Show me, Mello-chan," Robin demanded, gently but firmly.

Her ears went the same shade as her hair as the young girl slowly inched her hand to uncover the doodle she'd been so absorbed with. It was a rather bad picture of a figure with her bobbed hair in Zoro's signature stance.

Robin suppressed a smile and sat down beside her goddaughter. They were working at a table in the converted library, one half of the spacious room that Nami and Robin had once shared, since Nami, Sanji, and now Mello lived in the former observatory cum library. It was a little small, but not cramped, thanks to Franky, and sunlight poured in from the large windows on two walls. She watched that sunlight turn the little girl's hair a bronzy brass, as her pupil refused to look up.

"Mello-chan," Robin said, her face stern.

"'M sorry, Aunt Robin," Mello muttered.

Robin sighed, then said gently, "I know it's not as interesting as swordplay, Mello-chan, but History is important. The Sunny, and everyone on it, including your mom and dad, are a living piece of history."

That made Mello look up, "Even stupid Captain Uncle Luffy?"

That made Robin smile, "You shouldn't call the captain stupid, Mello-chan. He's the Pirate King."

Robin hesitated over what to tell a child. Luffy and the other Straw Hat's part in bringing down the World Government was very much a secret, and his efforts in rebuilding the world were entirely accidental. They'd always been more concerned with fulfilling each other's dreams. Luffy was the Pirate King. They'd picked up Laboon on the other side of the Grand Line, and Franky had cried big, manly tears to see his dream, and the Sunny's dream, fulfilled. A copy of the Rio Poneglyph was shelved in the library, as were transcriptions of other Poneglyphs and maps of the Grand Line; Paradise, the New World, and Raftel. They'd spent a year with the giants of Elbath and with Shanks' crew, so Usopp could be a proud warrior of the sea and meet his father, and another year with Mihawk and Perona so Zoro could defend his greatest swordsman title. Mello had even helped Chopper to achieve his dream by catching nearly every disease she could at whichever port they landed at, giving him plenty of practical experience. After eight years of chasing rumours, they'd finally found the All-Blue. It was just Nami's dream now, one that worked with Luffy's desire for freedom. They were a family, by choice and by blood spilled, roaming the wide sea and finding new dreams to pursue.

"He's still stupid for not letting me wear his hat," Mello grumbled.

"The hat is very important to him. He had to beat Uncle Shanks for it," Robin told her, "The hat is also a living piece of history."

She stopped suddenly. Her observation Haki told her something else.

"What is it, Aunt Robin?" Mello recognized that look. She'd been in enough fights with the rest of the crew to know that that look meant "find the nearest adult and stay close."

"Duck," Robin ordered. Mello ducked.

The door of the library exploded off its hinges, splinters and nails flying everywhere. Luffy came flying through, clutching something that looked like Franky's arm. Robin's eyes narrowed. The debris had missed her, and she'd made sure none of it had hit Mello, who, wide-eyed, was lying flat under the library table.

"Dammit Luffy! Now I'm going to have to fix that door," Franky yelled at him from the giant hole in the wall. He might've said more, but he withered under Robin's glare.

"But it's a robo cannon arm!" Luffy was obviously no worse for wear. He bounced up with stars in his eyes, waving Franky's arm around like a madman, "It's so cool! Can't you see how cool it is Robin?"

"Cool!" Mello jumped out from her hiding place from under the table, "Does it have another cannon inside it?" She had stars in her eyes too. Robin sighed. She would never understand what kids and boys found so interesting about Franky's mechanical parts.

"Oh hey, Mello-chan. That's where you were!" Luffy said, noticing the girl.

"Yup, you almost squashed me," she noted absently, still running her hands over the arm, "Found it!" She grinned when she found some invisible latch and something clicked.

"Ah, hang on Mello, don't play with other people's arms without their permission!" Franky protested. It was too late.

"COOOOOOOL!" Both Luffy and Mello were equally excited to see Franky's entire arm turn into a fishing apparatus. They grinned at each other, a pair of kids, and Robin already started formulating her excuse to Nami. "Let's go fishing!" They shouted in unison.

Mello looked pleadingly at Robin, who just waved her off. She just wouldn't tell Nami unless the other woman asked. How much trouble could the kids get into?

* * *

Nami had known she'd have trouble finding her daughter when she'd forecast the weather this moening. It really was beautiful today. The deck was warmed by the sun and smooth under her bare feet, and the breeze carried the smell of fresh salt and sea air. It was just the kind of weather where Mello got into trouble. Sanji had reassured her that Mello was having lessons with Robin, but Nami hadn't seen the other woman all day - quite a feat for a ship as small as the Sunny. Neither the archeologist nor her daughter were in the Library.

"GO MELLO!" Nami's head snapped up when she heard the idiot trio yell her daughter's name. The shout had come from Luffy, Chopper, and Usopp, all on top of Laboon's back, over the strains of Brook's violin playing Bink's Brew. Their backs were to her, so they didn't see her eyes narrowed when she realized they were holding what looked like one of Franky's arms. What in the world were they doing?

"LUFFY! USOPP! CHOPPER!" Nami went to the railing to yell at them.

Brook's guitar came to a screeching halt as he, Chopper, and Usopp froze. Luffy didn't notice and continued cheering at Franky's arm. Even Laboon trembled a little at the sound of Nami's voice, causing minor tidal waves that buffeted the Sunny.

"H-Hi Nami!" Usopp shouted back, waving his arm with a manic cheeriness. Nami wasn't fooled.

"Where is Mello?" She demanded.

"M-M-Mello?" Chopper laughed nervously, "H-Haven't seen her all day. Have you asked Robin?"

"YOHOHOHO! Nami-san! I want to ask a favour from the bottom of my heart," Brook waved at her, trying to distract her from Usopp and Chopper's terrible lying. Nami glared at him. He cleared his throat theatrically, then said in an aside to Laboon, "If I had a heart-"

"Sorcery Climatact!" Nami's climatact extended, and she thwacked Brook with it. She didn't have time for his idiocies while her daughter was missing. Mello could've fallen off the side of the boat, or...

"Woohoo! She got something!" Luffy was cheering as he hauled hard on Franky's arm, and the line was being pulled tight, thrashing about here and there as if a mighty battle was being fought on the other side. Nami narrowed her eyes. She wouldn't have...

"Got it!" Nami's eyes bugged out as she saw her daughter come flying out of the ocean, a fish hook in her new shirt. Mello had her arms wrapped around a sea monster twice her size, as the thing tried to throw her off.

"Hold him still, Mello! Gum gum...," Luffy yelled excitedly, winding his arm back to punch the monster.

"Oh HELL NO!" Nami yelled, moving like greased lightning. She smacked Luffy aside, sending him into the sea, and hooked Mello onto the end of her climatact. Tossing her daughter and the sea monster she refused to let go of onto the deck, she used the backwards movement to smack Luffy back onto Laboon's back. Served him right that he was all battered and bruised.

"Nami," Luffy whined at her, but instantly withered under her glare. Nami snarled at him, then turned the full force of her wrath on her daughter.

Mello just held up the limp sea monster, torn sleeve and collar and all. She was grinning proudly in the face of her mother's considerable and terrifying ire. "Look Mama! I caught dinner!"

* * *

"Owwwwwwwwwwwwwwwowwow!" Mello howled as Nami grimly worked a comb through the tangled mess that was her daughter's hair.

"Be quiet, you naughty girl," Nami growled, "It serves you right. If you were less of a tomboy..." She nevertheless tugged more gently at yet another snarl. How did such short hair develop so many snarls?

"We n-needed dinner! And I needed tr-training!" Mello said through chattering teeth. She had a blanket wrapped around small frame and a possessive watch over the sea monster she'd brought down.

"It's dangerous! Unnecessarily so!" Nami continued to scold, "You should have been more careful - the only one who could've helped you in the ocean was Usopp, and he's a coward!"

"Hey!" Usopp exclaimed indignantly, "I am a proud warrior of the sea!"

Nami tsked at him, but she knew deep down if Mello had been in any serious trouble, Usopp would help. She just wasn't rational about her daughter's safety. But really, who would think hooking a nine year old on a robot arm fishing pole and throwing her into the sea so she could be the bait for sea monsters was a good idea? Luffy, Brook, Usopp and Chopper did, apparently.

"She'll be fine," Chopper announced, putting away his stethoscope. "She just has a bit of a chill. She should have something hot."

"Achoo!" Mello sneezed, looking thoroughly put out.

"Papa can probably make you something," Nami sighed, finally letting her daughter get up since she'd gotten the last knots out of Mello's hair. She kissed her daughter on the forehead. "Go ask him for something yummy."

"Knowing Sanji, he's already gotten something prepared," Usopp muttered.

Just then, Sanji burst out with two steaming bowls on a tray, "Nami-love! Mello-chan!" He called blissfully, "I made some soup!"

"Yay!" Mello jumped up, throwing off the blanket and running towards her father. She hugged his waist enthusiastically. Nami winced as she saw Sanji go to ruffle his daughter's hair, but frown when he realized she was wet.

"What happened Mello-chan!?" quick as a flash, the tray was on the floor as Sanji put his hands on Mello's shoulders. "You're wet! Why are you what? What happened?!"

"I caught dinner, Papa!" Mello cheered, "Look!" She pointed to the sea monster on the deck.

"Good job, Mello!" Sanji cheered with her, then did a double take at the size of the monster, "How'd you catch that?"

"Luffy, Usopp, Chopper, Brooke, Laboon and I went fishing! I was bait!" Mello explained.

"You were WHAT?!" Sanji exploded in a literal fiery fury. He rounded on the trio.

Mello brought Nami the tray, and the two of them sipped the warm broth as Sanji proceeded to beat Usopp and Luffy into a bloody pulp with his flaming leg. Normally, Nami would have smacked them, but she'd been too concerned with Mello to think of beating the idiots first. She snuck a glance at her daughter, but Mello was unperturbed, since she'd grown up on the Thousand Sunny.

"Papa, you promised to teach me how to cook," Mello called when she finished the cup of soup. Nami handed her daughter her empty cup, and Mello ran to the galley door with the tray of the empty cups. She looked back at the kerfuffle. "C'mon Chopper!"

"Coming!" Chopper joined her at the galley door.

"Coming Mello-chan!" Sanji trilled. He left the two clowns in a bloody pile on the deck and picked up the sea monster Mello had caught, and offered his other hand to Nami with a flourish. Nami smiled. Ten years later, she still smiled at his romanticisms.

They forgot about the pile of bodies that was Luffy and Usopp on the deck. Brook peeked around from his hiding place on the other side of Laboon. It looked like the coast was clear.

* * *

"You need about this much rice," Sanji demonstrated, sleeves rolled up in an elbow and wearing an apron that said "gentlecook" across the front. He watched as Mello and Chopper copied him, Mello giggling at Chopper's fumbling with his hooves. Chopper was putting on a bit of a show to make Mello laugh. The ships doctor was the closest to Mello, considering the amount of time she'd spent in the sick bay as a kid. They shared a mutual love of sugar, especially cotton candy, although they often disagreed whether the blue or the pink tasted better (Nami didn't have the heart to tell them Sanji just added different colourings).

"Mama, what kind of filling do you like?" Mello smiled at her mom, "I'll make you some!"

"Wa, really? Hmm, Mama likes whatever you do," Nami petted her daughter's head.

"Ah, no fair!" Mello pouted.

"Mama's favourite is orange zest duck, Mello-chan," Sanji pointed out an orange dish full of filling and winked at Nami, "But she likes anything you make her."

"Okay!" Mello cheered.

"Arara," Robin smiled when she came into the Galley. "Are we making Onigiri?"

"Yep!" Chopper grinned. "Come help us, Robin!"

"First, Robin, here you go," Sanji presented her with a gorgeous yellow coffee cake and a coffee service.

"Oh my, is it that day already?" Robin smiled, joining Nami at the counter. She offered the other woman a slice and a cup of coffee. Nami took it with a small blush.

Onigiri making went a lot faster with Robin there. Mello practiced on the orange zest duck onigiri, while Chopper worked on another platter and Robin made the others. They were soon done, but there was still some leftover rice.

When Mello and Chopper were done, they wandered over to Robin, who gave them two slices of coffee cake she'd been saving. Mello tried the puppy dog face to see if she could get a cup of coffee as well, but Robin only laughed.

"No, Mello-chan. Coffee will make you short," Robin smiled.

"Awww," Mello pouted, but went ahead and dug her fork into the slice.

"Yummy! It's lemon flavoured!" Chopper said through a mouthful, "Sanji makes the best sweets!"

"Neh Aunt Robin, why do you get coffee cake every year?" Mello asked, kicking her legs against the stool.

Nami and Sanji both froze. Robin saw their reaction to the innocent question, and her gentle smile edged into the smirk category. "Well, Mello-chan," Robin smiled innocently, dragging the moment and Mello's parent's discomfort out. Nami sent her an imploring look over her daughter's head. Understandable, Robin thought. How do you tell a child that you gave her parents a chance to express their overwhelming sexual tension? "I made a lot of Onigiri. People will do a lot for Onigiri." Robin smiled at Mello, grinning on the inside when she saw Sanji and Nami's shoulder's relax.

"Really..." Mello murmured. She ate the rest of her lemon coffee cake contemplatively, and if Nami hadn't been so flustered, she wouldn't've missed the crafty gleam in her daughter's eyes. But since Sanji was soon absorbed in making dinner, and Nami and Robin were talking about their poneglyph map challenge, they missed Mello sneaking a plate of the leftover rice under the table with Chopper.

"Sanji, I'm hungry!" Luffy burst in, Usopp close behind him, "Wow look at that!"

"That's a lot of Onigiri!" Usopp goggled, "Are any of them sea monster?"

"We're having sea monster soup for dinner. The Onigiri are for lunch tomorrow," Sani scolded, "Mello, Chopper, and Robin made them."

"Really? Which ones did Mello make?" Luffy grinned.

"The ones on the orange platter," Nami nodded, then yelled, "Hey don't eat them all! Those are my onigiri! My daughter made them for me!"

"She can just make more, can't she?" Luffy said through a mouthful of onigiri. "These are yummy."

"Yeah," Usopp agreed, his cheeks puffed out with more riceballs. He looked around, "Where is Mello, anyways?"

"Eh?" Sanji turned around, dropping his ladle. He closed his eyes and activated his Observation Haki, "Mello-chan!"

The table jumped as Mello yelled "Ow!"

Nami turned around and looked under the table, where Chopper and Mello were making some plain white onigiri. "More Onigiri, Mello-chan?" Nami raised her eyebrows. "Why are you under there?"

"Cause I'm making special rice balls! They're for a special person," Mello grinned, rubbing her head. This time, Nami noticed the glint in her eyes.

"Mello-chan, what are you planning?" Nami asked her.

"Nothing," Mello tried to look innocent. Nami wasn't fooled for a minute.

"Special onigiri, eh, Mello-chan?" Sanji came around, went down on his haunches. He pointed to his mouth. "Does Papa get one? I am your special person, aren't I?"

"Nope," Mello refused, sending Sanji into sulks, "I'm saving them for Uncle Zoro!"

"That Marimo!?" Sanji cried, shocked and hurt. He went to sulk in a corner. Mello looked at him witheringly, but finished up the last of her rice balls. "Okay, I'm off to deliver them!" She exclaimed, emerging from under the table carrying a plate of plain, white onigiri.

"Be careful, Mello-chan," Nami called to her daughter, then went over to her husband, who was still sulking.

"C'mon Papa," Nami patted him on the shoulder, "Get over your daughter complex, Sanji-kun. The stew your daughter caught the fish for is burning." She sighed when he still didn't budge, still planting the mushrooms gloomily in the corner. She whispered another suggestion in his ear.

That got Sanji moving.

* * *

Zoro prized his naps.

And his rest.

"UNCLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE ZOROOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Dammit.

Zoro propped open one eye from his sleeping pose as for the second time today, a small orange head popped through his trap door. He really needed a lock on the damn thing to keep inquisitive brats out.

"What?" He scowled at her, noting the rice clinging to her shirt and the same black smears on her blue shirt. And the plate of onigiri she put on the floor.

"You missed dinner, Uncle Zoro," Mello smiled, all innocent, "I brought you something!"

"Oh yeah?" Zoro opened the other eye, reached towards the plate. "Th-"

Mello pulled the plate away from him, "Only if you promise to teach me swordsmanship."

Zoro scowled at her, "No."

"No dinner for you then," Mello kept the plate behind her back.

Zoro contemplated his options. He could definitely overpower her, get the onigiri from her, but the brat would probably get a little scuffed in the process. Nami and Sanji would beat him up for it. Sanji, Zoro wasn't worried about, but he still owed Nami money. He could go down and get some more food, but he was lazy.

"There's no more food left," Mello lied quickly, reading his mind.

Zoro contemplated her. Ah, what the hell. Why not?

"Give it here," Zoro said gruffly, holding out his hand.

Mello gave him a suspicious look, "You'll teach me the three sword style?"

Zoro scoffed, "I'm taking the food aren't I?"

"Yay!" Mello passed him the plate, then jumped with joy. Zoro unwrapped the plate, picked up one of the onigiri and took a big bite. And winced.

He remembered this flavour.

"Sweet?" Zoro spluttered through a mouthful of rice and Nori.

"Yup!" Mello cheered, "Because sugar is the best! I made these rice balls just for you!"

Zoro looked down at the onigiri he was holding, and shrugged. He ate the rest without complaining, and got up after he was done. "Alright, brat, there's a wooden practice sword in the corner. You gotta learn one before you can learn three."

* * *

The sun was slanting through the round windows in the crow's nest when Robin went in through the trap door. She saw Zoro's physique, highlighted by sweat and the sunset, as he swung a two ton weight and a small, sleeping form on a pile of mats.

"You wore her out?" Robin asked, coming to sit beside the sleeping form. She stroked the little girl's hair, turned fiery bronze in the light.

Zoro grunted through a ton of steel in his mouth. He continued swinging, but glanced over to where Mello was sleeping.

"How were the onigiri?" Robin tipped her chin at the empty plate.

Zoro grunted again, and Robin smiled. "I'm sure she was happy that you liked them. You ended up teaching her?"

Zoro grunted again, this time sounding decidedly disgruntled. "She's definitely Nami's daughter," Robin responded.

Zoro grunted again and rolled his eyes. "Yes, I'm not sure where she gets the motion sickness from either. Maybe from a dragon or something."

Zoro snorted, and Robin actually laughed. "I won't forget the first time she puked down Sanji's collar either. Well, it's time for her bed time, anyways."

Robin sighed, got up, and used her devil fruit powers to lift Mello up. Mello stirred, woke up grudgingly.

" 'M a big girl, Aunt Robin, 'n 'm too heavy," She complained, trying to get up on her feet. Robin's hands steadied her, but the minute she let go, Mello wobbled again, looked like she was about to fall over, when Zoro reached over, picked her up, and slung her over his shoulder.

"Geez, that Ero-cook should be the one picking up his own daughter," He complained.

Robin tilted her chin to the window. Zoro looked over, then rolled his eyes, "Ero-cook," he scowled.

Mello looked up blearily, then her eyes blinked wide open, and she squirmed to be put down. "Mama and Papa are dancing!" She gasped, running to the window to press her nose against the glass when Zoro did so.

Robin followed her over, watching what was making the little girl's eyes sparkle.

The strains of Brook's violin reached over the sea to them in the crow's nest. It was slow and romantic, something that was mellow with time and memories. Robin had heard the musician recording the tone dial last week. The sunset was a glorious backdrop that set the sea asparkle like a carpet of diamonds and lovingly gilded their silhouettes. Robin smiled. Ten years later, and they could still sky-dance across the sea to romantic music, could still smile at each other as if they were the only two people in the world.

"Wow!" Mello exclaimed, as they watched Sanji effortlessly spin Nami around. She'd gotten quite good at it, Robin noted. Then again, the tradition had started because Nami had been determined to learn, so she could protect Mello if Sanji was busy fighting an enemy, after Mello had puked down Sanji's collar for the first time.

"Why do they dance like that, Aunt Robin?" Mello asked.

"To celebrate their love, Mello-chan," Robin replied.

"Why?" The little girl demanded.

Robin paused. This question really should've been for Nami or Sanji to answer. "Because their love made you, I guess," Robin finally replied.

Mello considered her answer with all the gravity of a young Vegapunk. Then she asked, "Do you love anyone, Aunt Robin?"

The question took Robin by surprise. She blushed slightly, and quickly glanced at Zoro, but the swordsman was still looking out the window and didn't seem like he was paying attention to the exchange. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, because if you don't love anyone, you could love Uncle Zoro!" Mello explained brightly. "Then your love could make me another cousin to play with!"

Robin was speechless as both she and Zoro turned a bright red. Zoro abruptly picked Mello up and slung her back over her shoulder. "Hey!" Mello complained.

"Time for bed, brat," Zoro muttered, heading for the trapdoor. Robin followed. Her cheeks felt hot to the touch.

* * *

Nami was breathless and laughing when Sanji finally put her down on the deck of the Thousand Sunny, dipped her one last time to the infectious cha-cha beat. It was long past moon fall, and most of the crew were in their beds. They had the night watch. Nami was looking forward to it.

Twelve years. Ten years as lovers. Nami smiled deep into Sanji's clear blue eyes, their daughter's eyes. There were grooves there, smiles etched by time. His voice was deeper, raspier from the smoking, and his shoulders were broader, from carrying the responsibility of a family, of a daughter. Time had settle comfortably on Sanji, and while he was still fighting trim, he was more solid, more settled in his skin than he had ever been.

"I enjoyed dancing with a goddess tonight, Nami-love. You are as beautiful as the day I first saw you in the Baratie," He brushed his lips across her knuckles, executing a lavish bow.

Nami laughed again - a clear, bell-like ringing that always made Sanji smile too. She really was the most beautiful thing in the world, second only with their daughter. Time had ripened her beauty like a fine wine. If it had left its marks on her face, it only served to mark her happiness and her experience, all the wonderful things that made her his wonderful Nami-love.

"We should check on Mello," She reminded him, taking his hand to lead him towards their room. They'd both kept an eye on her with their observation haki, of course, knew that Zoro and Robin had tucked her in earlier, knew that she was sleeping soundly. But a parent always wanted to see.

It always startled Nami a little, that their beautiful, mischievous, intelligent daughter had come from them, come from that lucky accident. But then she looked at Mello, and she saw herself in Mello's craftiness, and Sanji in Mello's solicitude. Somehow, their daughter made it work. Nami was so proud.

The moon light spilled through the open door as the parents tiptoed in. Mello was sleeping soundly, snoring quietly. Sanji leaned down, kissed her large forehead (that Mello was so self conscious about, but that Sanji was convinced meant she'd inherited her mother's brain), and tucked the blanket more securely around her. Nami stroked her daughter's hair, the same true orange as her own, off that forehead.

Her hand brushed a piece of paper placed on Mello's pillow. Nami picked it up, surprised to realize that it wasn't Robin's scholarly hand, but Zoro's slashing script.

"What's that?" Sanji peered at it over her shoulder. "Ass...hole... cook... That damn Marimo. He writes like a five year old. I can hardly read it. Tell... your... brat... to... watch... her... damn... mouth? Tell your brat to watch her damn mouth? Why that asshole!"

Sanji was ready to go find Zoro to beat the swordsman up for his rudeness, but Nami started giggling. He stared at his wife. "What is it?"

"Mello's been asking me where she came from," Nami said through her giggles, "She must've asked Robin and Zoro whether they were in love. She wants a cousin to play with."

Sanji stared at her. "Robin? She's got better taste than that shitty swordsman."

Nami smiled, keeping her friend's confidences to herself. She tugged on her husband's arm to lead him out of their room, so they wouldn't wake their daughter. As the door shut behind them, Nami whispered in Sanji's ear.

"Why don't we make her a brother or a sister instead?"

* * *

And I'm done! Holy moly. That was a long one. The story turned out a heck of a lot longer than I was anticipating when I began this. Thank you all so very much for your words of encouragement along the way, for reading it all the way through. I hope you enjoyed it!

I was actually really nervous about Mello. The last time I wrote FF, I was flamed out of existence because of my OCs. I hope I did Sanji and Nami's prospective daughter justice! Let me know what you think in the reviews – constructive criticism is welcome, of course.

See you next time – I'm already plotting a couple one shots and an epic.


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